Individuals are often co-located, and yet can be hesitant to initiate dialogue with others in close proximity. There is frequently no clear way to determine a priori whether one individual is interested in engaging in conversation, or if an individual shares interests with another individual.
There exist social networking tools that can enable participants to “pre-meet.” For example, a traveler about to embark on a trip can identify others going on that same trip using a social networking site. A traveler can establish a priori whether he or she shares common interests with other travelers. This process, however, requires a level of planning that is not practical or even possible in many situations.
Similar obstacles can occur in many settings where people gather such as, for example, a bar or restaurant, where individuals may also want to engage with others.